Grinding disk

ABSTRACT

This invention relates to a grinding wheel comprising a frame including a generally circular shape and adapted to rotate about a rotation axis thereof and a plurality of grinding assemblies radially located on the frame, each of the grinding assembly comprising a depth control element, a cutting element and a chip management element.

CROSS-REFERENCE

The present application relates to and is a non-provisional applicationof U.S. provisional application No. 62/793,932 filed Jan. 19, 2019entitled GRINDING WHEEL, this document is incorporated herein byreference in its entirety.

FIELD OF THE INVENTION

This invention relates to a grinding wheel for use with a grinder tool.The present invention more precisely relates to a grinding wheel withseries of radially extending grinding assemblies.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

Grinding wheels are commonly used to grind and level material surfacesand generally have a limited life time and get worn out rapidly. Theyare rotating at fast speed and are generally creating a lot of dustwhile grinding the working material. Different types of abrasivematerials can be used in the grinding wheel in correspondence with thetype or material to be worked, the aggressivity of the work and theexpected end finish of the material. Carbide powdered grinding wheelprovide a longer lifetime but are generally more expensive.

Moreover, it is difficult to see the work done under the grinding wheelbecause it is not possible to see through the grinding wheel.

Furthermore, dept of cut of grinding wheels are difficult to control andis generally depending on the pressure applied to the grinding wheel.

Therefore, there is a need in the art for an improved grinding wheelover the existing art. There is another need in the art for such agrinding wheel that allows see-through operation to better see what isgrinded. There is also a need in the art for an improved grinding wheelthat is controlling the depth of cut and can manage cut chips materialefficiently. There is also a need for a grinding wheel that can beeconomically manufactured.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

It is one aspect of the present invention to alleviate one or more ofthe drawbacks of the background art by addressing one or more of theexisting needs in the art.

Accordingly, an aspect of our work, in accordance with at least oneembodiment thereof, provides an improved grinding wheel over the priorart.

An aspect of our work, in accordance with at least one embodimentthereof, provides a grinding wheel with an enclosed periphery thatincludes openings therein for seeing through work, the grinding wheelfurther comprises a series of generally radially disposed grindingassemblies including cutting elements, depth control elements and chipmanagement elements.

An aspect of our work, in accordance with at least one embodimentthereof, provides a grinding wheel that can be embodied with an array ofgrinding assemblies, each comprising a radial cutting element, depthcontrol element and chip management element.

An aspect of our work, in accordance with at least one embodimentthereof, provides a grinding wheel with an array of cutting elementsincluding alternated series of teeth for alternatively cutting materialwith teeth that are sequentially alternated so that one tooth isengaging the material left between two adjacent preceding teeth and soon so forth.

An aspect of our work, in accordance with at least one embodimentthereof, provides a grinding wheel including a plurality of cuttingelement equipped with carbide or diamond teeth thereon and furtherincluding intervening recesses.

Another aspect of our work, in accordance with at least one embodimentthereof, provides a grinding wheel that is comprising between two andsix grinding assemblies.

Other embodiments and further scope of applicability of the presentinvention will become apparent from the detailed description givenhereinafter. However, it should be understood that the detaileddescription and specific examples, while indicating preferredembodiments of the invention, are given by way of illustration only,since various changes and modifications within the spirit and scope ofthe invention will become apparent to those skilled in the art from thisdetailed description.

Additional and/or alternative advantages and salient features of theinvention will become apparent from the following detailed description,which, taken in conjunction with the annexed drawings, disclosepreferred embodiments of the invention.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

Referring now to the drawings which form a part of this originaldisclosure:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a grinding wheel, in accordance with atleast one embodiment thereof;

FIG. 2 is a bottom plan view of the grinding wheel of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a top plan view of the grinding wheel of FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a side elevational view of the grinding wheel of FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a side elevational sectional view of the grinding wheel ofFIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a partial sectional elevational view of the grinding wheel inaccordance with at least one embodiment thereof;

FIG. 7 is a bottom plan view of the grinding wheel in accordance with atleast one embodiment thereof;

FIG. 8 is a bottom plan view of the grinding wheel in accordance with atleast one embodiment thereof;

FIG. 9 is a bottom plan view of the grinding wheel in accordance with atleast one embodiment thereof;

FIG. 10 is a bottom plan view of the grinding wheel in accordance withat least one embodiment thereof;

FIG. 11(A) is a partial sectional elevational view of the grinding wheelin accordance with at least one embodiment thereof;

FIG. 11(B) is a partial sectional elevational view of the grinding wheelin accordance with at least one embodiment thereof;

FIG. 11(C) is a partial sectional elevational view of the grinding wheelin accordance with at least one embodiment thereof;

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

A preferred embodiment of the present invention is described below withreference to the drawings.

A grinding wheel 10, in accordance with a possible embodiment, isillustrated in FIG. 1 throughout FIG. 5. The grinding wheel 10 comprisesa circular frame 14 including a material having sufficient mechanicalstrength to sustain the mechanical stresses and the thermal stressessustained by the grinding wheel 10 under operation. Suitable possiblematerials like aluminum, steel, stainless steel or other metallicmaterials can be contemplated for manufacturing the circular frame 14.The circular frame 14 is centered and adapted to rotate about a rotationaxis 18 when the grinding wheel 10 is assembled and rotated with agrinder (not illustrated) or other drive portion. The circular frame 14is embodied with an enclosed periphery 22 preventing undesirableengagement of the periphery of the grinding wheel 10 with externalobjects and also optimizing stress distribution in the grinding wheel 10for improving the overall strength of the grinding wheel 10. The frame14 includes a series of openings 26 therein for reducing the weight ofthe grinding wheel 10 and also allowing see-through operation of thegrinding wheel 10. Indeed, openings 26, when rotating, are allowing auser to see through the frame 14 to improve the vision of the workperformed by the grinding wheel 10 from a variety of angles.

The grinding wheel 10 is further equipped with a central opening 34, acentral recess 36 and a pair of locking holes 38. The grinding wheel 10comprises a plurality of grinding assemblies 30 disposed in a generalradial arrangement from the rotation axis 18. The radial location andalignment of the grinding assemblies 30 is generally projecting from therotation axis 18 in a direction toward the periphery 22 of the frame 14.The grinding assemblies 30 in the illustrated embodiment are radiallyprojecting from the rotation axis 18 with a 0-degree angle so to speakas best illustrated in FIG. 10. Other possible embodiments arecontemplated with the grinding assemblies 30 radially projecting fromthe rotation axis 18 with the following angles:

TABLE 1 Radial angle Minimum Maximum Preferred low Preferred high (FIG.10) angle angle angle angle Positive 0° +45° +5°  +10° Slightly 0° +30°0°  +5° positive Neutral 0°  0° 0°  0° (illustrated) Slightly −30°   0°0°  −5° negative Negative −45°  −30° −5°  −10°

Each of the grinding assemblies 30, as embodied, comprises a radialcutting element 40, a depth control element 44 and a chip managementelement 48. It is contemplated by the present description to embodybetween two and six grinding assemblies 30 in various configurations ona grinding wheel 10 without departing from the scope of the presentinvention. Some of the possible configurations are illustrated in theFigures while others can be inferred by a skilled reader in the art ofgrinding wheels.

The openings 26 includes a substantially trapezoidal shape for removinga maximum of material from the frame 14 while allowing sufficientmechanical strength. There are two openings 26 between adjacent grindingassemblies 30 in the present embodiment. Two adjacent openings 26 areseparated a wall member 52. The number, the size and the layout of theopenings between two angularly adjacent grinding assemblies 30 can varywithout departing from the scope of the present description.

One can appreciate the cutting element 40 is embodied as a carbidecutter 56 including a plurality of teeth 60 separated with interveningrecesses 64 as it can be appreciated in FIG. 1. Alternatively, thecutting element 40 could include diamond as a resistant hard-cuttingmaterial. Two adjacent cutting elements 40, from adjacent grindingassemblies 30.1, 30.2, for instance, have radially non-aligned teeth 60.Each tooth 60 cuts a groove that is leaving intervening material betweentwo adjacent teeth 40 from the same cutting element 40. Optimally, thecutting element 40 that follows when the grinding wheel 10 is rotatingis going to have an opposed layout of teeth 60 to cut the remainingintervening material left by the preceding cutting element 40. Thisprovides a smooth and even grinded surface while alleviate somedrawbacks from cutting elements having a different cutting pattern.

The combined effect of the cutting element 40, the depth control element44 and the chip management element 48 can better be appreciated in FIG.6 illustrating a magnified portion of FIG. 5. The grinding wheel 10 isrotating in a direction illustrated by arrow 68 where the surface 72 ofthe part 76 to grind is going to contact a reference surface 114 of thedepth control element 44 to ensure a cut depth 80 equivalent of adistance between the depth control element 44 and the tip of the teeth60. The dept control element 44 is embodied with a slope 110 and areference surface 114 but could be embodied differently with anothertype of structure adapted to limit the depth of the cut made by thecutting element 40. The slope 110 is axially protruding/extending over aframe surface 16 of the grinding wheel 10 to prevent undesirablefriction with the grinding wheel 10 and setting the cut depth 80 of eachcutting element 40. A radius is preferably joining the slope 110 to arecessed portion 100 of the chip management element 48. This controlledcut depth 80 prevents the grinding wheel 10 to “bite” too hard in thepart 76 that is worked on and keeps a more even cut along the part 76without preventing the cutting element 40 to functionally rotate. A chipflow 96 is guided in the recessed portion 100 of the chip managementelement 48. In the operational context of the grinding wheel 10, thechip is going to “flow” in the recessed portion 100 and is radiallyextracted thereof with the centrifugal force generated by the rotationof the grinding wheel 10. It is possible to appreciate from FIG. 6 thatthe teeth 60 has a clearance angle 84 with almost no rake angle 88.Other desirable variations of the clearance angle 84 and the rake angle88 can be optimized, adjusted and embodied for different materials andusage.

TABLE 2 Rake Maximum General Minimum Range Range Material angle depthdepth depth min max Hooves 0° to +5° 0.023″ 0.023″ 0.021 0.02″ 0.03″Aluminum 0° to +5° 0.021″ 0.019″ 0.018″ 0.018″ 0.021″ Wood 0° to −5°0.023″ 0.023″ 0.021 0.02″ 0.03″

FIG. 7 and FIG. 8 are illustrating other embodiments including adifferent number of grinding assemblies 30. One can appreciate thegrinding wheel 10 can be embodied with different layouts of grindingassemblies 30 and openings 26. It is contemplated a grinding wheel 10can accommodate from a single grinding assembly 30 to eight grindingassemblies 30 thereon. Preferably, a minimum of two grinding assemblies30 would be recommended for keeping the grinding wheel 10 balanced sincea counter balancing weight (not illustrated) would likely be required tomaintain a balanced rotation. The counter balancing weight could beobtained by managing the number, the size and the location of theopenings 26 or adding additional corresponding weight on the opposedside of the grinding wheel 10. In that respect, FIG. 7 illustrates agrinding wheel 10 accommodating a pair of opposed grinding assemblies 30with intervening openings 26. In contrast, FIG. 8 illustrates anotherpossible embodiment with six grinding assemblies 30 aligned in threepairs of grinding assemblies 30. These configurations are illustratingsome possible embodiments and a skilled reader could infer otherpossible configurations that are not explicitly shown in the drawings.

FIG. 9 is illustrating an embodiment of the grinding wheel 10 includingfour (4) equilaterally disposed grinding assemblies 30. The cuttingelement 40 in this embodiment is a straight single tooth cutting element40 in contrast with the previously illustrated embodiment that isincluding a series of distinct tooth in the cutting element 40. The typeof single-tooth design is adapted to equally slice and remove thepredetermined thickness determined by the cut depth 88 illustrated inFIG. 6.

Turning now to FIG. 10 that is illustrating radial angles that aredescribed in the present description. The radial angle is the angle ofthe cutting element 30 with respect to a perpendicular direction 118from a transversal section of the axis of rotation 18. The radial anglecan be positive 122 or negative 126 depending in which direction thecutting element 30 is positioned on the grinding wheel 10 with respectto the direction of rotation of the grinding wheel 10. Each cuttingelement 30 can be radially angled equally or be individually angled in avariety of angles. The illustrative ranges of the radial angle ispresented in Table 1.

The cutting element 40 can have a variety of rake angles. For instance,as exemplified in FIG. 11(A), the rake angle can be negative 130,generally for hard material to grind. The rake angle can be neutral whenthe front edge 142 of the cutting element 40 is aligned with the axis ofrotation 18 as exemplified in FIG. 11(B). Otherwise, the rake angle canbe positive 138, generally for soft material to cut.

While the invention has been described in connection with what ispresently considered to be the most practical and preferred embodiments,it is to be understood that the invention is not to be limited to thedisclosed embodiments and elements, but, to the contrary, is intended tocover various modifications, combinations of features, equivalentarrangements, and equivalent elements included within the spirit andscope of the appended claims. Furthermore, the dimensions of features ofvarious components that may appear on the drawings are not meant to belimiting, and the size of the components therein can vary from the sizethat may be portrayed in the figures herein. Thus, it is intended thatthe present invention covers the modifications and variations of theinvention, provided they come within the scope of the appended claimsand their equivalents. depth control element, a cutting element and achip management element.

What is claimed is:
 1. A grinding wheel comprising: a frame including agenerally circular shape and adapted to rotate about a rotation axisthereof, the frame including openings therein; and a plurality ofcarbide grinding assemblies radially located on the frame, each of thegrinding assembly comprising a depth control element; a cutting element;and a chip management element, wherein each cutting element is radiallyprojecting from the rotation axis.
 2. The grinding wheel of claim 1,wherein the cutting element is welded on the frame.
 3. The grindingwheel of claim 1, wherein the openings are symmetrically distributed ina circular array on the frame.
 4. The grinding wheel of claim 1, whereinthe cutting element includes a single tooth.
 5. The grinding wheel ofclaim 4, wherein the single tooth includes a continuous profile.
 6. Thegrinding wheel of claim 1, wherein the cutting element is rectilinear ina radial direction thereof.
 7. The grinding wheel of claim 1, whereinthe grinding wheel includes four angularly equidistantly distributedthereon.
 8. The grinding wheel of claim 1, wherein a virtual projectionof the front edge of the cutting element is intersecting the rotationaxis.
 9. The grinding wheel of claim 1, wherein the cutting elementincludes a neutral radial angle.
 10. The grinding wheel of claim 1,wherein the cutting element includes a negative rake angle.
 11. Thegrinding wheel of claim 1, wherein the depth control element includes aconvex curved profile.
 12. The grinding wheel of claim 1, wherein thechip management element includes a concave curved profile.
 13. Arotative apparatus comprising: a motor; and a drive member operativelyconnected to the motor; and a grinding wheel, the grinding wheelcomprising: a frame including a generally circular shape and adapted torotate about a rotation axis thereof, the frame including openingstherein; and a plurality of carbide grinding assemblies radially locatedon the frame, each of the grinding assembly comprising a depth controlelement; a cutting element; and a chip management element, wherein eachcutting element is radially projecting from the rotation axis.
 14. Therotative apparatus of claim 13, wherein the cutting element is welded onthe frame.
 15. The rotative apparatus of claim 13, wherein the openingsare symmetrically distributed in a circular array on the frame.
 16. Therotative apparatus of claim 13, wherein the cutting element includes asingle tooth.
 17. The rotative apparatus of claim 16, wherein the singletooth includes a continuous profile.
 18. The rotative apparatus of claim13, wherein the cutting element is rectilinear in a radial directionthereof.
 19. The rotative apparatus of claim 13, wherein the grindingwheel includes four angularly equidistantly distributed thereon.
 20. Therotative apparatus of claim 13, wherein a virtual projection of thefront edge of the cutting element is intersecting the rotation axis.